In this western, a young itinerant cowboy named John Weston is hired by a marshall to investigate the mysterious deaths--by snake bite--of promising rodeo riders. Entering a rodeo incognito, Weston confirms that a man named Barton has organized a racket, but he cannot solve the deaths. In the first day's competition Weston is squarely winning, and that night he is first befriended and then ambushed by the gang. He escapes and, the next day, discovers a poisoned needle embedded in his saddle. He not only wins the rodeo but captures Barton and wins the heart of the love interest, a local girl.
Mormonism is not mentioned explicitly in the film, but in 1934 the title clearly implied a Church connection; even moreso in the late 1800s setting. Wayne's character is repeatedly referred as being from Utah, and he lives up to implicit LDS standards, which were increasingly well-known in the 1930s, by not cussing and, particularly, obeying the Word of Wisdom (he is able to escape the gang's ambush because he does not drink the drugged liquor and then he sees the reflection of an approaching thug in the glass).
Famed star/stuntman Yakima Canutt both played Cheyenne Kent and oversaw/performed the stunts.
John Wayne - John Weston; Polly Ann Young - Marjorie Carter; Anita Campillo - Dolores; George Hayes - Marshall George Higgins; Yakima Canutt - Cheyenne Kent; Edward Peil Sr. - Spike Barton; George Cleveland - Sheriff
UK: U
Minor Mormon Elements; Narrative Film
Monogram Pictures Corporation
Commercial Theaters
55 min.
35mm black and white
Whirling ropes and snarling guns in the galloping grip of a glamorous drama!